[Please Read] The Broke-Ass Bride Needs Our Help.

For those of you who don't know who Dana LaRue is, you are truly missing out on a whole lot of awesome.  Dana is the founder of The Broke-Ass Bride, the first source I fell in love with and read religiously while planning my own wedding. 

Dana has been such a huge inspiration to me.  I hated planning my wedding until I read The Broke-Ass Bride, and I contend to this day that our wedding would not have been the success that it was and the true expression of us that it was if it weren't for Dana, her blog, her humor, her amazing tips and her candid tales.  I owe her so much.  

When she found my little blog back in 2010 and she started following it, I about shit my pants.  I remember I was in the car driving to work when I checked my email on my phone.  I saw that The Broke-Ass Bride had left a blog comment on one of my posts, and I practically screamed with excitement.  And ever since then, we have been dear friends and allies in the wedding industry and in our personal lives. She is one of the most strong women I have ever had the pleasure knowing.  And I even get to blog for her every Tuesday!  How lucky did I get?  In fact, I find it utterly insane that I get to call her my friend after having idolized her and her blog for all those months.  I'm such a fan girl, I know.  But who wouldn't be a fan of Dana?  

So why am I talking to you all about this amazing woman?  Well, Dana has so bravely come forth to ask for our help... to ask for the powers of the Internet Blogging Community to join forces to raise money for a very worthy cause.  What cause, you ask?  

When Dana was 19, she was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease called Uveitis.  Which means her immune system doggedly attacks her eyes causing dangerous inflammation, visual disturbances and blurriness. It is incurable and will cause blindness if left untreated.

She also has a very rare deep-tissue form of a disease called Granuloma Annulare, causing a different type of inflammation in her foot, for which she had surgery last year. It is so rare, she is unable to find a doctor who knows how to treat it moving forward.

She has endured 11 surgeries, at least one, each year, for the past 5 years, to control her diseases and their side effects.

And sadly, just last month her left eye came out of remission and she learned the devastating news that she will need a 12th surgery to manage the inflammation.

Her surgeries and ongoing care (even with health insurance) have left piles of bills in their wake, and she is now at a point where, without help, she cannot pay for her medical care.

And without the ability to pay for her health-related bills, Dana cannot run The Broke-Ass Bride full-time, which would be totally and utterly shitty for the rest of us. So what's the solution, you ask?

Dana and her amazing husband Hunter have received loads of encouragement to hold an online fundraiser, but receiving without giving isn’t really their bag... so this is the plan:

The Fundraiser

♥ We’re compiling beloved comfort food recipes and the stories behind them from the most bad-ass bloggers and beyond… available in varying forms, in exchange for donations to Dana's medical care.

♥ There are incentives for varying levels of donation, which you can learn about here.

♥ The recipes, photos and stories will be teased on our Dishing for Dana blog, and once a donation is processed, a password to access the full recipes will be released to each donor.

The Goal

♥ $13,000 to cover current medical bills

♥ $6,032 to cover health insurance premiums for the remainder of 2011

♥ $2,000 to donate to the American Autoimmune Related Disease Association toward helping others with autoimmune disease

For a minimum total of $22,000.

The Details

♥ People can donate any amount they choose, no minimum, no rules. Because every quarter is a quarter more than we had yesterday. It all adds up.

♥ We will donate 10% of all proceeds up to our goal, to the American Autoimmune Related Disease Association, so that every dollar contributed not only goes toward my medical care, but also to benefit everyone with autoimmune disease.

♥ Anything raised in excess of the goal will be split 50/50 with the AARDA – our portion of which will be saved in a dedicated, interest-bearing account toward future surgeries and ongoing medical care.

A message from Dana:

"Having this autoimmune disease has formed me into the creative, ambitious and irrepressible woman I am today, and it inspired the birth of The Broke-Ass Bride (and thus, is probably how we came into each other's lives). While no one can yet cure me, the idea that my online community could rally up to ease my condition’s painful and limiting financial side effects… well that gives me hope beyond expression."

If you're able and willing to help, please email dana@brokeassbride.com, or bowiebride@gmail.com for more information.  

Ready to donate a recipe or $$$?  Then visit Dana's fundraising site: Dishing For Dana for more details. 

Thank you for taking the time to read this.  Your generosity is very much appreciated.